US warship enters Black Sea, admiral calls on Russia to 'closely monitor'
US warships are allowed to enter the Black Sea and there is nothing unusual, but Russia should actively monitor them in such cases, Admiral Viktor Kravchenko, Chief of the Russian Navy General Staff (1998-2005), told Sputnik.
The US destroyers Donald Cook and Porter are currently present in the Black Sea, which entered the Black Sea at the end of January. NATO linked the appearance of these ships to Russia's "military buildup". The night before, the US Navy released a video recording a Russian Su-24 bomber flying next to one of the ships. Later, the former chief of staff of the Black Sea Fleet, Pyotr Svyatashov, called for a strong response to the actions of the US fleet.
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| Photo of Russian fighter jet flying near US destroyer. Photo: It |
“The current rules allow these ships to enter the Black Sea for a certain period of time and subject to certain requirements. It is only necessary to observe them and strictly monitor them,” Mr. Kravchenko said.
He explained that the task of tracking foreign warships should be entrusted to “direct tracking ships”: monitoring whether the destroyers are engaged in illegal activities, studying their tactics, and also constantly warning about not being allowed to enter Russia's territorial waters, doing everything possible to make these ships understand that their presence is “undesirable”.
In the worst case, if necessaryRussian ships had to push American ships out of territorial waters., the admiral added.
